One of the very best ways to access whole new realms of flavor from your favorite foods and ingredients is to make use of a smoker to cook them up.
Smokers are cooking apparatuses that are designed to slowly cook ingredients in a small area that is filled with smoke, which slowly cooks the food while also imbuing it with a delicious smoky flavor.
Smokers are great to use during the summer months because you can gather up your friends to sit outside in your backyard and smoke up some delicious meats, vegetables, and even fruits.
The options are almost limitless, and as such, you may be overwhelmed by potential.
If you want to know some of the very best things to cook up in your smoker, then make sure to read on down below, because today we are going to show you some of the very best smoker recipes that will easily get your mouth watering (see also: Best 10 Farro Recipes That Will Make Your Mouth Water)in no time.
1. Smoked Chicken Thighs
Chicken thighs are some of the best things that you can cook up in your smoker precisely because of how different they taste from more standard cuts like chicken breasts.
Chicken thighs have a great amount of fat to them, as well as a lot of dark meat, which makes them incredible to eat. They are incredibly juicy, and they cook excellently.
The outer surface of the chicken thighs will take on a really satisfying crispy texture that contrasts against the smooth texture of the inner meat. It’s really satisfying to bite into these.
Chicken thighs are very easy to smoke, and they are also very inexpensive to purchase, making them a great style of meat to smoke up.
You can easily smoke these small morsels of meat alongside some larger meats even in a smaller smoker, which makes them a great way to supplement an existing smoker feast!
2. Smoked Pulled Beef
Few things are quite as immediately satisfying as pulled beef. The great thing about pulled beef is that not only does it taste simply incredible, but the texture of the meat becomes incredibly soft and succulent, making it easy and satisfying to eat!
Cooking the perfect pulled beef is sometimes easier said than done, however, but with a smoker, you can easily create the perfect cooking conditions to make the beef take on that perfect texture that you crave.
This recipe will not only show you the perfect temperatures to achieve with your smoker but will also show you how to best season the beef so that every bite tastes so amazing.
We loved following this recipe, and the smell of the meat as it cooked was enough to quickly get our mouths watering(see also: Best 11 Silken Tofu Recipes That Will Make Your Mouth Water). It’s truly incredible!
3. Smoked Korean Chicken Wings
While smoking meat already makes it take on an incredible flavor, with a smokiness that is irresistible, you can take that amazing flavor one step further with this recipe which shows you how you can cook perfect and succulent chicken wings that are coated in a Korean Gochujang sauce.
This recipe will show you not only how to cook the chicken wings to absolute perfection, but will also show you how to create the perfect Gochujang sauce which you can drizzle all over the chicken wings before cooking, to give them that perfect flavor.
The sauce makes use of plenty of rice wine vinegar, honey, and ginger, as well as other ingredients, to create a sticky coating that is sweet, sharp, and so satisfying.
These are another fantastic dish to cook up in your smoker because the chicken wings take up little space, so you can cook them alongside other food!
4. Smoked Mac And Cheese
That’s right! We’ll bet you were quite surprised to learn that it is totally possible to cook a delicious and fulfilling mac and cheese entirely with your smoker!
However, this recipe is not just some strange novelty that will wow your guests for only a few minutes, as it tastes just as good as it looks. The benefits of smoking mac and cheese are immediately evident as soon as your guests take their first bite.
The smoke helps to give the whole dish a great smokiness that spreads across the palate with every bite.
The mac and cheese is also incredibly smooth, making it perfect to pair with foods of a slightly sharper taste, such as hot chicken wings, or some smoky beef.
5. Smoked Beef Cheeks
Beef cheeks are a highly unique cut of beef, which can make them totally incredible to eat. If you really want to make the most of your smoker and create a dish that will easily satisfy your dinner guests, then you simply need to try out beef cheeks.
Beef cheeks are renowned for their incredible tenderness. Though the cut of meat may sound strange, to begin with, it has a very familiar taste that you would expect from beef, but a much different texture.
The meat is incredibly tender, but has a slight stickiness to it, thanks to the high concentration of collagen that can be found in the cheeks.
This stickiness makes this cut of beef perfect to pair with a sticky sauce for another layer of morish texture!
6. Smoked Top Sirloin Beef
Sirloin is a very specific and highly prized cut of beef that is usually found towards the upper middle half of the cow.
Sirloin is known for being incredibly rich, and containing much of the beefy flavor that you love. The meat is also incredibly tender, and this is made doubly-so when it is smoked.
Sirloin beef smokes surprisingly well, and all you need is a little bit of time and patience to allow you smoker to get to work and make the beef take on that perfect texture you want.
If you want to make the most of sirloin in your smoker, then you will definitely want to give this recipe a try. It will show you the best way to do it every time.
7. Double Smoked Spiral Ham
Many people find themselves surprised when they learn that ham (see also: Best 20 Spam Recipes To Make Your Mouth Water)can be cooked easily in a smoker. This recipe shows you how you can do it perfectly every single time, and we totally loved the end result.
The spiral ham itself took on the perfect flavor, and it seemed to melt away on our tongues as we ate it. It was so decadent and easy to eat that it was an absolute pleasure.
It takes a little bit of extra time to prepare the meat for smoking, but the delight on your guests’ faces will be more than worth it all!
8. Smoked Pineapple
Pineapple is a fruit that is able to easily pair with a massive number of meats because it has such a complex flavor profile that allows it to pair with so many other flavors.
However, we’re willing to bet that you didn’t know it could be smoked, right? Well, allow this awesome recipe to enlighten you. We totally loved the way that the pineapple cooked when we tried this recipe out ourselves.
The pineapple managed to retain its strong structure and texture, but the outer surface became just a little bit crispier, making it more satisfying to bite into it!
Cooking pineapple helps the fruit release whole new dimensions of flavor with ease, and the added benefit of smoking also allows the pineapple to take on a great smokey taste.
Cooking pineapple results in a caramelized treat that is perfect (see also: 10 Tips For The Perfect Caramel Apples)for creating summery and meaty dishes that you will love. It can be paired with so much!
9. Smoked French Fries
What’s the perfect side dish to pair with succulent and rich meat? A bed of french fries of course!
However, did you know that you don’t have to make use of any other cooking implements to cook your fries? That’s right! You can easily cook perfect french fries, with the perfect taste and texture, in your smoker, and this recipe will show you how!
10. Smoked Baked Beans
Baked beans are a perfect pairing with meat as they have a great savory taste, and the texture of the beans is perfect to pair with the meat.
With this recipe, you can learn how to easily cook these beans using just your smoker. When baked beans take on the smoky flavor from a smoker, it creates a really decadent culinary treat!
To Wrap Up
These are just a few of the amazing things you can cook up using your smoker, but they are easily the absolute best.
Frequently Asked Questions
One of the best things about smoking meat is that it is easy to do with just about any meat. However, some of the best meats to do with it are beef and chicken.
In a way, yes. The process itself involves little added fat, and the cooking process causes fat to drip off of the meat.
While smoking a steak is no better than cooking it any other way, it can really help to add an extra dimension of great flavor!
When I gave birth to my first kid, I could no longer skip dinner, or just cook easy meals.
This is what inspired me to create EatThinkBeMerry.com.
I hope you will get to find your own inspiration for your next meals and have as much fun as we do looking out for you!
- How To Fill a King Cake With Bavarian Cream - April 15, 2024
- Dealing With Mold on Oyster Mushrooms - April 9, 2024
- What Meat Goes With Pumpkin Ravioli? (Ravishing Ravioli Combos) - March 15, 2024